Cover Reveal and Teaser for SIDEBARRED by Emma Chase

I am excited to be included in the cover reveal for the wrap up novella for the Legal Briefs series called SIDEBARRED.  I read this series for the first time recently and absolutely loved this contemporary series about four defense attorneys who are friends and colleagues.  I really loved the series which is funny and emotional and I look forward to getting more of these fascinating characters.

Sidebarred FOR WEB

This novella provides a coda to the series by giving fans one last glimpse of the their favorite couples.  The book blurb states:

Join Jake & Chelsea, Stanton & Sofia, Brent & Kennedy as they navigate the hilarious and heartwarming hurdles of love, life and the law in this final addition to the Legal Briefs Series.

There was a time when Jake Becker had it all together. He was controlled, driven, ruthless—in and out of the courtroom.

Then, six irresistible orphans and their heartbreakingly beautiful aunt crashed into his perfectly ordered life. They changed everything. They changed him. Now he’s a husband, an upstanding member of society, a father figure—a family man.
And he’s pretty damn good at it.

Sure, he has to referee sibling smackdowns, re-learn algebra, ensure his clients stay of jail, and keep his wife happy—but it finally feels like he’s got it together again….
So, of course something has to screw it all up.

It’s huge. Life-changing. Kind of terrifying.

And it will be the most amazing, perfect thing he’ll ever do.

Now Teaser #1 from SIDEBARRED.

Chelsea sits beside me on the couch, facing me, her legs tucked, her pretty feet curled under her. Yes—Chelsea has pretty feet, okay? I never knew feet could be pretty—until I saw hers.
“So . . . that talk I mentioned before? We should probably have that now, while we can.”
I take a sip of my drink and nod. “Yeah—I wasn’t at all hoping you’d forget about it or anything.”
Her face slides into a grin. “Funny.”
I look back at her, straight-faced. “I’m a funny guy.”
When she doesn’t say anything for a few moments, I ask, “What’s up?”
Because now I’m actually getting concerned. My stomach tightens as I brace for whatever’s worrying her—and before I even know what I’m up against, in my head I’m already planning all the ways I’ll take care of it. Because that’s what I do—and I’m good at it.
But what she tells me next blows my fucking mind.
“I’m late.”
Two words—ten thousand thoughts exploding in my head at once.
I’m a big guy, six-five, 225 pounds of muscle. Guys like me, our voices don’t squeak. But at this moment, mine comes damn close.
“Like . . . for an appointment?”
Chelsea inhales deeply, then breathes out, “No.”

You can see my reviews of the three novels to get a sense of the series.

Review of OVERRULED

Review of SUSTAINED

Review of APPEALED

Pre-Order SIDEBARRED at Amazon, B&N and Kobo.

Growing Into a New Blog

Ah, that new blog smell.

I have been a romance reader since I was about 15 years old. I began with Gone with the Wind, moved on to “borrowing” my mom’s romance books (which consisted primarily of 1970s bodice rippers) and then began checking out dozens of books from the library in my last years in high school.  I was weaned on Jayne Ann Krentz (writing as Stephanie James), Johanna Lindsey, Nora Roberts, Iris Johansen, Judith McNaught, Kathleen Woodiwiss, Elizabeth Lowell and Diana Palmer.

During my college and post-graduate education, I hid my reading preferences because smart women aren’t supposed to like “trashy books”. That was the status quo while building my career and family.

One of the benefits of turning 40 was a decision to stop caring about what other people think of my reading preferences.  I make no judgments about what you read, and I don’t care what you think about what I read.

I began reviewing the books I read with a vision toward just recording my thoughts and feelings about the books I read. Just about every book is liked by someone.  I believe that a book has an audience. It might not be me, but I don’t particularly like the dismissive, snotty attitudes that often permeate reviews.  I do not insult books or those who like that book.  I will tell you if I don’t like a book and I will tell you why, but I always try respect the book and readers who do like it.

I regularly review books on Amazon and Goodreads.  I also started a blog several years ago just to archieve my reviews. After more than two years of blogging my reviews of romance books at my old site, I purchased this site a year ago and mirrored the content with an eye toward creating a more vibrant blogging space.

Finally, I have jumped into a whole new vision of what I want to do with this site.  Thus, a new Top 10 Romance Books is born.

My focus will always be on reviewing romance books, but I would like to add some additional content including some favorites lists, tales of attending romance related events and hopefully one day interviews.

I’m not sure where this will go…but we are going.